ELR Citation: 53 ELR 20062
No(s). 3:23-cv-032 (D.N.D. Apr 12, 2023) (Hovland, J.)

A district court granted 24 states' motion to preliminarily enjoin EPA's and the Army Corps of Engineers' 2023 rule revising the definition of "waters of the United States" under the CWA. The states argued the rule violated the APA, the Commerce Clause, the Tenth Amendment, the Due Process Clause, and the non-delegation doctrine. The court found the rule was not understandable or intelligible, that its boundaries were unlimited, and that it raised "a litany of other statutory and constitutional concerns." It further found the states demonstrated that the rule posed a threat to their sovereign rights and amounted to irreparable harm. The court enjoined the rule within the borders of Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wyoming.